Independent participatory media for Iran

While Iranian President Hassan Rohani was greeted by a crowd of supporters upon his return from New York, reports indicate that his car was the target of a shoe thrown from within a group of detractors.

The Mehr News Agency reports that the attack may have come from a crowd of nearly a hundred Basij students that had gathered at the airport.

Supporters were carrying banners lauding Hassan Rohani’s success during his five-trip to New York.

Rohani’s car was reportedly also blocked at one point by groups opposed to negotiating with the United States.

Earlier, the hardline website Rejanews had reported that a group of people opposing negotiations with the U.S. was going to gather at the airport for the president’s return. This website is one of a handful that has expressed opposition to Rohani’s telephone conversation with Barack Obama.

In an unprecedented move yesterday, September 27, the U.S. president telephoned the Iranian president before Mr. Rohani left New York for Iran.

Rohani said: “In this conversation, I stressed that in terms of the nuclear issue, we are not only discussing the rights of the Iranian nation but also Iranian national pride, and the U.S. president announced that they respect the right of the Iranian people to attain nuclear power.”